So the state Board of Regents wants 200 more charter schools, and may get support from the governor and state Senate. They are all buying in to the Obama administration's pro-public charter push, even as it colludes in killing off the Washington, D.C. voucher program that funds Roman Catholic and other private schools.
Catholic schools across the country are apparently converting to charters as an alternative to disappearing, a process endorsed by NYC Mayor Bloomberg and the bishop of Brooklyn. Meanwhile, the proliferation of charter schools in the city of Albany is seen as contributing to the decline in Catholic school enrollment there, as well as to a permanent fiscal crisis for the public school district.
Many charter schools, including some in Albany, do good work, outperforming the regular public schools. But the mass closure of Catholic schools is a nationwide educational disaster. Anyone seeking to alleviate it in the Albany Diocese can contribute to the Beacon of Hope Scholarship Fund. (In Brooklyn there's the Futures in Education Foundation at 310 Prospect Park West, NY 11215.)
Comments